Christopher Hampton adapts The Singapore Grip for ITV

Luke Treadaway, Charles Dance, David Morrissey and Jane Horrocks will star in historical drama The Singapore Grip, an adaptation of J. G. Farrell’s novel of the same name.

The period drama is set during the Second World War and follows a British family in Singapore during the Japanese invasion in 1942.

Ruthless rubber merchant Walter Blackett (David Morrissey) fears for the future of his firm when his business partner Webb (Charles Dance) falls ill, and concocts a scheme to wed his spoilt daughter Joan (Georgia Blizzard) to Webb’s kind hearted son Matthew (Luke Treadaway).

The plan is far from straight-forward, as Matthew falls under the spell of Vera Chiang (Elizabeth Tan), a Chinese adventurer with a mysterious past.

Also joining the cast are Jane Horrocks, who stars as Walter’s wife Sylvia Blackett, Colm Meaney as Major Brendan Archer, Luke Newberry playing Walter’s son Monty, Bart Edwards as Captain James Ehrendorf and Christoph Guybert playing Dupigny.

The mini-series will be adapted by award-winning playwright and screenwriter Christopher Hampton (Atonement, Dangerous Liaisons).

“As a great admirer and, eventually, a friend of J.G.Farrell, I was delighted to be invited to adapt The Singapore Grip, a panoramic account of the disastrous loss of Singapore to the Japanese invaders in 1942,” Hampton commented.

The Singapore Grip will be produced by Mammoth Screen for ITV and executive produced by Damien Timmer (Poldark).

“For me, J.G. Farrell and Christopher Hampton is the absolute dream team – two of the finest writers this country has ever produced,” Timmer added. “It’s a privilege to be making this for ITV, and we hope this hugely entertaining and exotic saga will be a memorable treat for the audience.”

Filming has begun in South East Asia for the six-part series , which is directed by Tom Vaughan (Doctor Foster, Victoria).